Warmlite 2RS

I’ll start with the short list of the things I LIKE about this tent. It really is incredibly light for a 2 person tent, and it is really quick and easy to set up. I got the side window option, which is also a very nice feature.

I splashed out to get the aluminized option (extra $90!!) because I live in New Zealand where UV is extra harsh. When the tent arrived, they had only put the aluminized fabric on top of the tent, and used ordinary fabric on the side walls which appear just as exposed to UV as the top. What a rip-off. This tent does not breathe AT ALL if there’s no wind blowing. And that’s with two small women in VBLs. The inside of the tent around the entrance gets absolutely drenched from breath vapor on cold, still nights. It may be dry outside, but you get soaked getting in and out of the tent in this kind of weather (which is common where I hike). I now carry a sponge to wipe the tent down on the inside. On top of that, if it DOES rain, there is no way to get in or out of the tent without letting the rain pour straight into the main tent compartment. In other words, the sloping end wall and lack of separate entrance vestibule ensures the tent becomes a rain catcher when opened. Fortunately I was able to cut the insect net out of one of the side windows, so we now use this as an entrance and cooking shelter when it’s raining. If I hadn’t gone for the side window option, this tent would have been a dead loss. The tent inner hangs very loosely which makes it difficult for even two people to use the tent without touching the (often wet) drooping sides, so even though the floor area of the tent looks impressive in theory, in practice it’s not easy to use all this space. It’s the coldest tent I’ve ever used thanks to the condensation.